Mysterious Bacteria Quiz

Bacteria plays a vital role in our lives, good and bad. Friendly bacteria helps our bodies function properly, from our skin to our digestion. When the wrong bacteria comes along, it can wreak havoc inside our bodies or in our environment. Test your pathogen proficiency with this mystery bacteria quiz.

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Question 1 of 20

Hot tubs are supposed to be for relaxation, not infection, but this organism has been known to cause 'hot tub lung.'

Mycobacterium avium

When you take a hot soak (above 84 degrees), the chlorine in hot tub water isn't able to disinfect as well, and bacteria can flourish. Hot tubbers breathe in Mycobacterium avium, causing coughing and fatigue.

Aspergillus

Vibrio cholerae

Streptococcus

Question 2 of 20

Troops who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan have come in contact with this bacteria, the same that infected wounds in the Vietnam war.

Burkholderia pseudomallei

Acinetobacter baumannii

Acinetobacter baumannii organisms have been found infecting and colonizing wounded military personnel and are one of the most difficult organisms to treat because of their growing resistance to multiple antibiotics.

Staphylococcus aureaus

Question 3 of 20

What bacteria lives in soil and may enhance your mood and make you smarter?

Mycobacterium vaccae

Mycobacterium vaccae occurs naturally in soil and may give you a natural high when you spend time outside. Studies show that the bacteria increases our level of serotonin, the "feel good" chemical in our brain.

Yersinia pestis

Rhizobiaceae

E. coli

Question 4 of 20

This rod-shaped organism killed one out of every three Europeans during the Middle Ages.

Bacillus anthracis

Francisella tularensis

Yersinia pestis

The most common disease caused by Yersinia pestis is the Bubonic plague -- Black Death -- but it can cause others as well. When this bacteria invades the lungs, it causes Pneumonic plague, and when it's in the blood, it causes Septicemic plague.

Question 5 of 20

This bacteria is spread through the contaminated urine of infected animals and can cause flu-like symptoms or severe organ damage in both humans and our pets.

C.glabrata

E. coli

Leptospira

The Leptospira bacteria typically infects a person or animal via drinking contaminated water and can cause a variety of symptoms, including high fever, severe headache, chills, muscle aches, vomiting and diarrhea, jaundice, red eyes, abdominal pain and rash. When left untreated, it can lead to organ damage, meningitis or death.

Chlamydia

Question 6 of 20

You may think your laundry is clean but when you move your wet delicates from the washer to the dryer, what bacteria are you exposing yourself to?

Yogurt is known for its good-for-you bacteria, known as probiotics, but other foods also offer similar benefits. Which food does not contain probiotics?

sauerkraut

miso

kefir

bananas

There are trillions of microbes living in your digestive system, but age, medications and disease can diminish the bacterial colony. Certain foods can help replenish it - but bananas aren't among them.

Question 8 of 20

Prebiotic bacteria are found in foods such as honey and bananas and are a tasty buffet to the probiotic microbes living in our gut. What about prebiotics do probiotics like?

their sugar

Prebiotics are non-digestible sugars that provide food -- oligofructose and inulin -- to the bacteria living in our digestive tract, specifically encouraging bifidobacteria to grow.

their fat

their protein

their vitamin C

Question 9 of 20

Different types of this organism are known to cause everything from sore throats to scarlet fever to flesh-eating disease, as well as dental cavities.

Staphylococcal bacteria

Haemophilus bacteria

Streptococcal bacteria

Don't rejoice with a candy bar just yet -- Streptococcal bacteria may be causing your cavities but it does so by eating sugar and releasing acid that causes tooth decay.

Question 10 of 20

Your purse may be stylish but chances are you don't treat it very well -- the bottom of women's purses have been found to contain thousands (sometimes millions) of microbes. Which isn't a common bacteria hitching a ride in your hobo?

Staphylococcus

Pseudomonas

Salmonella

Legionella

While the microbes found on your bag could often cause skin or eye infections, and sometimes gastrointestinal problems, Legionella (the cause of Legionnaires' disease) are usually found in warm water.

Question 11 of 20

To be considered sanitary, a surface should have no more than 1,000 bacteria per square inch. In which of the following locations will you find more Staphylococcus bacteria?

bathtub

According to a recent study, Staphylococcus bacteria, which causes skin infections -- including the drug-resistant strain (MRSA), which can be severe -- is found in 26 percent of bathtubs.

trash can

toilet seat

Question 12 of 20

What is the estimated combined weight of the trillions of microbes living in your gut?

Less than 1 pound

1 to 2 pounds

2 to 3 pounds

3 to 5 pounds

There are more than 100 trillion microbes living in your digestive system, all adding up to about 3 to 5 pounds.

Question 13 of 20

Which of the following bacteria is a major cause of peptic ulcers?

Klebsiella

Helicobacter pylori

For a long time, we believed stress or poor diet caused ulcers. However, in 1982, it was discovered that most peptic ulcers are actually caused by bacteria -- Helicobacter pylori (or H. pylori).

Enterococcus faecium

Neisseria meningitidis

Question 14 of 20

Beware ordering a fountain-dispensed soda. According to one recent study, what percentage of soda fountains contain coliform bacteria (fecal microbes)?

18

35

48

Of the sodas tested by microbiologists during a study at Hollins University, 48 percent were found to contain fecal coliform including E. coli, Chryseobacterium meningosepticum, Klebsiella, Staphylococcus and others (some were found to be drug resistant).

62

Question 15 of 20

Would you like lemon in your beverage? No, you don't. Multiple studies have shown restaurant lemon wedges are freqently tainted with what bacteria?

E. coli

E. coli is a bacteria commonly found in fecal matter, and it is the number one bacteria found on lemon rinds and pulp. Other bacterias known to cause skin infections were found, in low numbers.

Chryseobacterium meningosepticum

Shigella

Question 16 of 20

Fact or fiction: A certain disease-causing pathogen may also bear beneficial uses because it encourages blood to clot.

fact

The discovery of a bacteria that encourages coagulation could help doctors and researchers protect us from dangerous blood clots.

fiction

Question 17 of 20

What is the most effective way to kill drug-resistant 'super bugs' such as Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) when cleaning your house?

bleach

The spores of these antibiotic-resistant superbugs can't be tamed by alcohol-based cleansers or just plain soap and water -- you need to use bleach-based cleaners.

alcohol-based cleaners

soap and water

Question 18 of 20

What, other than your sweet tooth, could be to blame for your chocolate craving?

genetics

vitamin deficiency

certain gut bacteria

A study published in the American Journal of Proteome Research found that people who have to have their daily chocolate fix have different types of bacteria living in their digestive system than people who don't crave chocolate.

Question 19 of 20

Bacteria may like to feed on carbohydrates -- and as we learned earlier, that includes chocolate -- but they're not spending their days eating proverbial bonbons. What environmental catastrophe could they help?

earthquake

oil spill

How to clean up an oil spill without the booms and chemicals normally dispatched to counter the mess? Bioremediation -- naturally-occurring bacteria that are hungry for hydrocarbons (petroleum products). They eat it, release carbon dioxide and water, and die off.

volcanic eruption

HAZMAT spill

Question 20 of 20

What might diverse colonies of bacteria in your gut help you do?

stay lean

Researchers at the Institute for Genome Sciences at the University of Maryland School of Medicine found that people who don't have bacterial diversity in their digestive tracts were more likely to be obese (and vice versa).